State Bar Mourns Passing of Past President Steven C. Krane

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Photo of Steve Krane

ALBANY, NY (06/23/2010)(readMedia)-- With great sadness and regret, the New York State Bar Association mourns the passing of Past President Steven C. Krane of New York (Proskauer Rose LLP). Krane served as the 104th President of the State Bar Association from 2001-2002 and was the youngest attorney to hold the office. During his tenure as president, Krane led the State Bar's efforts to assist victims of the September 11th attacks and created the Special Committee on Student Loan Assistance for the Public Interest (SLAPI) that provides grants to defray loans for lawyers working in the public sector.

"Today is an extremely sad day for members of the New York State Bar Association and throughout the entire legal profession. I have lost a treasured friend, and the State Bar has lost one of its greatest leaders and finest gentlemen in Steve Krane," said State Bar President Stephen P. Younger of New York (Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP). "Steve was a true lawyer's lawyer and one of the nation's foremost and widely recognized leaders in the field of legal ethics and professional responsibility, and worked tirelessly during his career to promote legal reform. We wish to extend our deepest sympathies to Steve's family and friends during this most difficult time, and we always will remember Steve's lasting contributions and distinguished record of excellence in his service to the State Bar and to the legal profession."

Krane was a partner at Proskauer Rose LLP, concentrating his practice in representing lawyers and law firms in legal ethics and professional liability matters. He co-chaired the firm's Law Firm Practice Group and served as general counsel for the 700-lawyer firm. He previously served as a law clerk to Hon. Judith S. Kaye, retired Chief Judge of the State of New York, from 1984 to 1985.

Within the State Bar Association, Krane recently chaired the Committee on Standards of Attorney Conduct (COSAC), which drafted the Rules of Professional Conduct. He previously served as chair of the House of Delegates, Nominating Committee, International Section, Resolutions Committee, Special Committee to Review the Code of Professional Responsibility, Special Committee on Cross-Border Legal Practice, and the Special Committee on Multi-Disciplinary Practice and the Legal Profession. He is a past vice-chair on the Special Committees on Law Governing Firm Structure and Operation and the Future of the Profession.

He was a past member of the State Bar's Finance Committee, Membership Committee, Strategic Financial Planning Committee, Committee on Professional Ethics, Committee on Mass Disaster Response, Committee on Courts of Appellate Jurisdiction, the Electronic Communications Committee, Special Committee on Issues Affecting Same-Sex Couples, Special Committee on Law Practice Continuity, and the Task Force on Simplification.

Krane also was a member of the American Bar Association's Board of Governors and of the Policy Committee of the Bar Issues Commission of the International Bar Association. Krane received his undergraduate degree from Stony Brook University and earned his law degree from the New York University School of Law.

In June 2009, Krane was appointed by Governor David A. Paterson to the New York State Commission on Public Integrity. From 1996 to 1999, he was a member of the Departmental Disciplinary Committee, First Judicial Department, in New York, where he served as a hearing panel member and hearing panel chair. He also served as a hearing panel chair for the Committee on Grievances of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. He was a special referee for disciplinary cases in the Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department. Krane has written and lectured extensively on attorney ethics issues, and taught professional responsibility for several years at the Columbia University School of Law.

Founded in 1876, the 77,000 member New York State Bar Association is the official statewide organization of lawyers in New York and the largest voluntary state bar association in the nation. The State Bar's programs and activities have continuously served the public and improved the justice system for more than 130 years.

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